Pensacola High Football

2009—2010

Guide to College Recruiting

Initial Steps • Scholarship Information• Eligibility

Getting a Call in May • College Recruiting Information• Rules
Summer Camps• Campus Visits• Financial Aid • Important Notes
Probability of Being Accepted

"If they really want to play college football, there is a place for them to play"

You and your family must have a sincere and definite desire to play college football and the genuine belief that you are academically and physically able to do just that. When a player is listed as a prospect, we, as coaches, are standing on our credibility with the college coaches to whom we are marketing the players.If the you and/or your family don't have the sincere and definite desire to play college football and the genuine belief that they are academically and physically able to do just that then please don't participate.  However, once that decision is made, just let the coaching staff know and we can get started.

If you want to play college football, you must qualify academically!

Take special care to learn and live your priorities and their order:

1. FAITH
2. FAMILY
3. ACADEMICS
4. FOOTBALL
5. EVERYTHING ELSE

TAKE CARE OF PRIORITIES BECAUSE IT’S THE RIGHT THING TO DO. OTHERWISE, YOU MAY NOT BE ABLE TO PLAY COLLEGE FOOTBALL!

Good initial steps:

1. Make sure you have completed a questionnaire from LRS SPORTS to be included in their prospect database used by college coaches. If you are unsure of whether or not you are presently in the LRS database, contact Mr. Dwight Thomas – LRS Sports Recruiting Specialist. Coach Thomas’ email address is DThomas@LRS.com. Make sure Coach Bennett or your position coach signs the form before submission.
2. Send in all of your info via the internet to www.rivals.com and www.scout.com
3. Fill out online prospect forms:

i. COMPLETE PLAYER PROFILE AT THE FOLLOWING LINK:
http://flavarsity.rivals.com/drawform.asp?form=567
ii. COMPLETE PLAYER PROFILE AT THE FOLLOWING LINK: http://recruiting.scout.com/3/questionnaire.html

4. Get the free NCAA student-athlete guides at 1-888-388-9748 or www.ncaa.org. Learn the permissive dates – 2009-2010 Division I Football Recruiting Calendar: http://www1.ncaa.org/membership/membership_svcs/recruiting_calendars/2009-2010/d1_football.pdf

2009-10 Division I Football Recruiting Calendar
a. August 1 through November 28, 2009, [except for (1) and (2) below]:	Quiet Period
(1) 42 evaluation days (54 for U.S. service academics) during the months of September, October, and November, (not to exceed a period of 42 days) selected at the discretion of the institution and designated in writing in the office of the director of athletics; authorized off-campus recruiters shall not visit a prospective student-athlete's educational institution on more than one calendar day during this period.	Evaluation Period
b. November 25, 2009, through January 30, 2010, [except for (1) though (10) below: Six in-person off-campus contacts per prospective student-athlete shall be permitted during this time period with not more than one permitted in any one calendar week (Sunday through Saturday) or partial calendar week:	Contact Period
(1) December 13, 2009, all junior college prospective student-athletes who intend to enroll midyear.	Quiet Period
(2)December 14-17, 2009, all junior college prospective student-athletes who intend to enroll midyear.	Dead Period
(a) Institutional staff members may have contact with a prospective student-athlete who has been admitted for midyear enrollment, provided the prospect has signed a National Letter of Intent or other offer of admission and/or financial aid to attend the institution and is required to be on campus to attend institutional orientation sessions for all students.	Contact Period
(3) December 18-19, 2009, all junior college prospective student-athletes who intend to enroll midyear.	Quiet Period
(4) December 20, 2009:	Quiet Period
(5) December 21, 2009, through January 1, 2010 [except for (a) below]:	Dead Period
(a) Institutional staff members may have contact with a prospective student-athlete who has been admitted for midyear enrollment, provided the prospect has signed a National Letter of Intent or other offer of admission and/or financial aid to attend the institution and is required to be on campus to attend institutional orientation sessions for all students.	Contact Period
(6) January 2-3, 2010:	Quiet Period
(7) January 4-9, 2010, all junior college prospective student-athletes who intend to enroll midyear.	Quiet Period
(8) January 10, 2010	Dead Period
(9) January 11-14, 2010, [except for (a) below]	Dead Period
(a) Institutional staff members may have contact with a prospective student-athlete who has been admitted for midyear enrollment, provided the prospect has signed a National Letter of Intent or other offer of admission and/or financial aid to attend the institution and is required to be on campus to attend institutional orientation sessions for all students.	contact Period
(10) January 15-16, 2010:	Quiet Period
(c) January 31, 2010:	Quiet Period
(d) Febuary 1-4, 2010:	Dead Period
(e) Febuary 5 - April 14, 2010:	Quiet Period
(f) April 15 - May 31, 2010, [except for (g) below]: Four Weeks (excluding Memorial Day and Sundays) selected at the discretion of the member institution and designated in writing in the office of the director of athletics [as provided in (1) below]:	Evaluation Period
(1) An authorized off-campus recruiter may use one evaluation to assess the prospective student-athlete's athletics ability and one evaluation to assess the prospective student-athlete's academic qualifications during this evaluation period. If an institution's coaching staff member conducts both an athletics and an academic evaluation of the prospective student-athlete on the same day during this evaluation period, the institution shall be charged with the use of an academics evalution only and shall be permitted to conduct a second athletics evaluation of the prospective student-athlete on a seperate day during this evaluation period.
(g) Those days in April/May not designated above for evaluation opportunities:	Quiet Period
(h) June 1 - July 31, 2010	Quiet Period

5. SEND HIGHLIGHT TAPES, PHOTOS, & PLAYER PROFILE/INFORMATION (Must include name of school, city, state, height, weight, 40 time, GPA, fffers received, schools you are interested in attending, visits you have taken or plan to take, any academic or sports honors you have received, and statistics if applicable from last year. ) TO EACH OF THESE ADDRESSES:

Michael Langston FlaVarsity.com 1640 Eagles Landing Blvd. #101 Tallahassee, FL 32308	Derek Williams Sunshine Preps 33601 State Road 52 Box 2372 Saint Leo, FL. 33574-2372 813-340-0971 info@sunshinepreps.net
Rivals Recruiting Ten Cadillac Drive, Suite 400 Brentwood, TN 37027 615-507-1000 recruiting@rivals.com	Scouts, Inc. ATTN – Dave Geaslen (ESPN) PO Box 1439 Andover, MA 01810
PrepStar Football Recruiting 22900 Ventura Blvd., Suite 100 Woodland Hills, CA 91364	Justin Castilla c/o Scout Media Player Evaluations 2003 Western Ave. Suite 700 Seattle, WA 98121

Return to Top

NCAA Scholarship Information & Recruiting

The NCAA allows each Division I football program 85 scholarships (I-A) and 63 scholarships (I-AA). In Division II, 36 scholarships are available. To retain Division I status, a football team must have 76.5 football scholarship players and can carry 85 active scholarship players. In Division I-AA, schools have 63 scholarships, usually divided among 85 players. There are 117 Division I-A, 124 Division I-AA and 150 Division II colleges that offer football scholarships. As a high school football player you should be aware that the standard of play at any college level is very high. Remember that only the absolute top players will be approached with offers. Most football players will have to market themselves. It doesn't matter how good you are, to get recruited and be in line for a football scholarship, you need to tell the college coaches who you are and why you deserve to be recruited. COACHES CANNOT EVALUATE YOUR POTENTIAL IF THEY DON’T KNOW YOU ARE OUT THERE! Many qualified players are overlooked each year because they didn't submit their athletic profile to the "right" colleges or they left out vital information. Many players believe that the college recruiting process is something that happens “to them”, and that the college coaches will come “to them” with scholarship offers. That might be the case if you are in the top 0.1%, but most athletes have to MAKE THEMSELVES KNOWN TO THE PEOPLE THAT COUNT....COLLEGE FOOTBALL COACHES. To get recruited, and be in line for college scholarships you MUST become known to the college coaches. Your ability can only get you recruited if you tell the coaches who you are, and what you can do in the form of a resume or profile. There are no "secrets" in the recruiting process, it’s simply a marketing exercise and you, the athlete, are the product. The best way to dramatically improve your chances of being offered sports scholarships is to become known to the people that count THE COACHES. As was mentioned at the outset, if they don't know who you are, they can’t recruit you. It’s that simple.

THINGS TO REMEMBER

Be honest with yourself; you know your athletic capabilities.
Have a resume -- include academic and athletic information.
Ask questions about athletic programs; don't get in over your head.
Get your name on the coach's desk.
Understand the recruiting process.

Something else to note: Beware of the FOUR-YEAR FULL RIDE SCHOLARSHIP... It does not exist. Each athletic scholarship is renewed on a year-to-year basis. Be sure to check with that institutions policy on renewing that scholarship before accepting it.

Return to Top

NCAA Academic- Eligibility Requirements

Division Requirements • Core Course Requirements
Internet, Distance, and Independent Study • ACT/SAT

Division I

You will be a qualifier if you meet the academic requirements listed below.

As a qualifier, you:
? Can practice or compete for your college or university during your first year of college;
? Can receive an athletics scholarship during your first year of college; and
? Can play four seasons in your sport if you maintain your eligibility from year to year.

You will be a nonqualifier if you do not meet the academic requirements listed below.

As a nonqualifier, you:
? Cannot practice or compete for your college or university during your first year of college;
? Cannot receive an athletics scholarship during your first year of college, although you may receive need-based financial aid; and
? Can play only three seasons in your sport if you maintain your eligibility from year to year (to earn a fourth season you must complete at least 80 percent of your degree before beginning your fifth year of college).

Division II

You will be a qualifier if you meet the academic requirements listed below. As a qualifier, you:
? Can practice or compete for your college or university during your first year of college;
? Can receive an athletics scholarship during your first year of college; and
? Can play four seasons in your sport if you maintain your eligibility from year to year. You will be a partial qualifier if you do not meet all of the academic requirements listed below, but you have graduated from high school and meet one of the following:
? The combined SAT score of 820 or ACT sum score of 68; or
? Completion of the 14 core courses with a 2.000 core-course grade-point average. As a partial qualifier, you:
? Can practice with your team at its home facility during your first year of college;
? Can receive an athletics scholarship during your first year of college;
? Cannot compete during your first year of college; and
? Can play four seasons in your sport if you maintain your eligibility from year to year.

Division III

Division III does not use the NCAA Initial-Eligibility Clearinghouse. Contact your Division II college regarding its policies on financial aid, practice and competition.

To qualify academically for Division I or Division II you must:

1. Graduate from high school.
2. Have 14 core courses to be eligible to practice, play and receive financial aid at a Division I or Division II school.
   • ? 4 years of English
   • ? 2 years of mathematics (Algebra I or higher)
   • ? 2 years of natural/physical science (one must be a lab science)
   • ? 1 year of additional English, math or science
   • ? 2 years of social studies
   • ? 3 years of additional core courses (from any area listed above, or from foreign language, non-doctrinal religion or philosophy)
   Note: Computer science courses can be used as core courses only if your high school grants graduation credit in math or natural or physical science for them, and if the courses appear on your high school’s core-course list as a math or science courses.
   
3. Division I - Earn a minimum required grade-point average in your core courses; Division II - Earn a 2.000 grade-point or better in your core courses; and
4. Division I - Earn a combined SAT or ACT sum score that matches your core-course grade-point average and test score on the NCAA sliding scale. (for example, a 2.400 core-course grade-point average needs a 860 SAT)
   Division II – Earn a combined SAT score of 820 or an ACT sum score of 68. There is no sliding scale in Division II.


5. For the class of 2008: Division I only -- 16 core courses If you plan to enter college in 2008 or after, you will need to present 16 core courses in the following breakdown:
   • ? 4 years of English
   • ? 3 years of mathematics (Algebra I or higher)
   • ? 2 years of natural/physical science (one must be a lab science)
   • ? 1 year of additional English, math or science
   • ? 2 years of social studies
   • ? 4 years of additional core courses (from any area listed above, or from foreign language, non-doctrinal religion or philosophy)
6. Register online! Prospective student-athletes must register with the NCAA Initial-Eligibility Clearinghouse on-line. www.ncaaclearinghouse.com.
   
   By registering on-line, prospects will be able to view their eligibility information on-line, and will not have to call the clearinghouse for eligibility updates. On-line registration saves time, and allows prospective student-athletes to view their eligibility status up to six weeks faster than through the paper registration process.

Return to Requirements

---

NCAA Core-Course Requirements

For purposes of meeting the core curriculum requirements to establish initial-eligibility at an NCAA Division I or II college or university, a "core course" must meet all of the following criteria:

(a) A course must be a recognized academic course and qualify for high school graduation credit in one or a combi-nation of the following areas: English, mathematics, natural/physical science, social science, foreign language, com-puter science or non-doctrinal religion/philosophy;

IMPORTANT NOTE: Computer science courses can be used as core courses only if your high school grants graduation credit in math or natural or physical science for them, and if the courses appear on your high school’s core-course list as a math or science courses.

(b) A course must be considered four-year college preparatory by the high school. College preparatory is defined for these purposes as any course that prepares a student academically to enter a four-year collegiate institution upon graduation from high school;
(c) A mathematics course must be at the level of Algebra I or a higher level mathematics course;
(d) A course must be taught by a qualified instructor as defined by the appropriate academic authority (e.g., high school, school district or state agency with authority of such matters); and
(e) A course must be taught at or above the high school's regular academic level (i.e., remedial, special education or compensatory courses shall not be considered core courses). However, the prohibition against the use of remedial or compensatory courses is not applicable to courses designed for students with learning disabilities.

Pensacola High Approved Core Courses
English	Social Science	Mathematics	Natural/Physical Science	Additional Core Course
AP English Language & Compostion	African-American History	1200370 Alg IA(.5 Credit/Yr)	Anatomy/Physiology	Amer Sign Language 1
AP English Literature & Compostion	American Government	1200380 Alg IB(.5 Credit/Yr)	Anatomy/Physiology/H	French 1
Eng Composition I	American Government/H	Adv. Topics In Math	Biology 1	French 1/Pre-IB
Eng Composition II	American Government/Pre-IB	Algebra 1	Biology 1/H	French 2
English 1	American History	Algebra 1/H	Biology 1/Pre-IB	French 2/Pre-IB
English 1/H	American History/H	Algebra 2	Biology 2/IB	French 3/Pre-IB
English 1/Pre-IB1	American History/IB/AP	Algebra 2/H	Biology 3/IB	French 4/IB
English 2	Comp Econ Syst/Pre-IB	Algebra 2/Pre-IB	Chemistry 1	German 1
English 2/H	Economics	Analytical Geometry	Chemistry 1/H	German 1/Pre-IB
English 3	Economics/H	Calculus	Chemistry 1/Pre-IB	German 2
English 3/H	European History/AP	Calculus AB/AP	Chemistry 2/IB	German 2/Pre-IB
English 4	Law Studies	Calculus BC/AP	Chemistry 3/IB	German 3/Pre-IB
English 4/H	Pre-IB World History	Geometry	Earth Science	German 4/IB
English 4/IB	Psychology 1	Geometry/H	Earth Science/H	Latin 1
English Skills 3	Psychology 2	MAC1105 College Algebra	Ecology	Latin 1/Pre-IB
Speech	Psychology 2/IB	Math Analysis	Integrated Science I	Latin 2
	Sociology	Math Studies-IB	Integrated Science II	Latin 2/Pre-IB
	World Geography	Pre-Calculus	Integrated Science/H	Latin 3/Pre-IB
	World Geography/IB	Trigonometry	Marine Biology	Spanish 1
	World History		Marine Science I	Spanish 1/Pre-IB
	World History/H		Marine Science I/H	Spanish 2
			Physics 1	Spanish 2/Pre-IB
			Physics 1/H	Spanish 3/Pre-IB
			Physics/AP	Spanish 4/IB
			Zoology

Return to Requirements

Internet, Distance Learning, Independent Study

Courses taught via the Internet, distance learning, independent study, individualized instruction, correspondence, and courses taught by similar means, may be used to satisfy NCAA core-course requirements if all of the following conditions are satisfied:

(a) The course meets all requirements for a core course as defined; and
(b) The instructor and the student have access to one another during the duration of the course for purposes of teaching, evaluating and providing assistance to the student; and
(c) Evaluation of the student's work is conducted by the appropriate academic authorities in accordance with the high school's established academic policies; and
(d) The course is acceptable for any student and is placed on the high school transcript.

Return to Requirements

Changes in SAT/ACT Tests

The SAT and ACT have made changes their tests; one of the most significant changes is the addition of a writing component. On both the SAT and ACT, students will be asked to write an essay. The SAT writing section is mandatory, while the ACT writing section is optional. The SAT will now have three parts: critical reading (formerly known as verbal), mathematics, and writing. Since each section is worth 200-800 points, the SAT score will now range from 600-2400.

Will the NCAA require a writing test as part of its initial-eligibility requirements?

The NCAA had determined that the writing component should not be required at the present time. The NCAA has noted the importance of reviewing research related to the impact of the writing component.

How will the NCAA Initial-Eligibility Clearinghouse use the scores on the new SAT?

Because the critical reading and math sections will still be scored on a 200-800 point scale, the clearinghouse will still combine those two sections for the combined score. The writing section will not be used. The clearinghouse will use scores from the new SAT in combination with scores from the current SAT for the combined score.

What about the ACT?

ACT is also adding a writing component, but the ACT writing component is optional. The scores on the ACT will remain the same.

Where can I get more information?

The College Board has information about the new SAT on its Web site at College Search - SAT Registration - College Admissions - Scholarships, and ACT has information at www.act.org.

Testing Calendar & Fees

SAT—WWW.COLLEGEBOARD.COM
The regular registration deadlines for December, January, and May have been extended. Changes are noted below.

2009-10 Test Dates	Test	Registration Deadlines
		Early (International only)	Regular	Late (a fee applies)
October 10, 2009	SAT & Subject Tests	August 19, 2009	September 9, 2009	September 25, 2009
November 7, 2009	SAT & Subject Tests	September 16, 2009	October 1, 2009	October 15, 2009
December 5, 2009	SAT & Subject Tests	October 14, 2009	October 31, 2009	November 13, 2009
January 23, 2010	SAT & Subject Tests	December 2, 2009	December 15, 2009	December 30, 2009
March 13, 2010	SAT Only	N/A	February 4, 2010	February 18, 2010
May 1, 2010	SAT & Subject Tests	March 10, 2010	March 25, 2010	April 8, 2010
June 5, 2010	SAT & Subject Tests	April 14, 2010	April 29 , 2010	May 13, 2010

Please Note the Following:

? Mailed registration materials must be postmarked by the U.S. deadlines.
? Mailed international registration materials must be received by the international deadlines.
? On March 10, only the SAT is offered, and only in the U.S., U.S. Territories, and Puerto Rico.
? Sunday administrations will occur the day after each Saturday test date for students who cannot test on Sat-urday for religious reasons. The October Sunday Test day is October 22, to avoid conflict with Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah.
? The Language Tests with Listening are offered in November only.

For students testing outside the U.S., U.S. territories, and Puerto Rico: Web registration, and telephone re-registration must be received by the international deadline dates listed above.

**http://apps.collegeboard.com/cbsearch_code/codeSearchSatTest.jsp
*Late Fees—http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/sat/calenfees/fees.html

ACT

WWW.ACTSTUDENT.ORG

Testing Centers & Dates
Pensacola Junior College	10550
		SAT 10-OCT-09
		SAT 07-NOV-09
		SAT 05-DEC-09
		SAT 23-JAN-10
		SAT 13-MAR-10
		SAT 01-MAY-10
University of West Florida	10568
		SAT 10-OCT-09
		SAT 07-NOV-09
		SAT 05-DEC-09
		SAT 23-JAN-10
		SAT 13-MAR-10
		SAT 01-MAY-10
Catholic High School	10606
		SAT 10-OCT-09
		SAT 05-DEC-09
		SAT 23-JAN-10
		SAT 13-MAR-10
		SAT 01-MAY-10
West Florida High School	10606
		SAT 01-MAY-10

* The September 15, 2009, test date is available only in Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, and West Virginia.
** Due to the special requirements of legislation in effect in New York, a February 2009 test is not scheduled in that state. This restric-tion may continue for the 2009–2010 testing year.

Testing Centers & Dates
Escambia High School	180170	SAT 15-SEP-07
		SAT 27-OCT-07
		SAT 08-DEC-07
		SAT 09-FEB-08
		SAT 12-APR-08
Pensacola High School	195580	SAT 15-SEP-07
		SAT 27-OCT-07
		SAT 08-DEC-07
		SAT 09-FEB-08
		SAT 12-APR-08
		SAT 14-JUN-08
Pensacola Junior College	007460	SAT 15-SEP-07
		SAT 27-OCT-07
		SAT 08-DEC-07
		SAT 09-FEB-08
		SAT 12-APR-08
		SAT 14-JUN-08
Univ of West Florida	007710	SAT 15-SEP-07
		SAT 27-OCT-07
		SAT 12-APR-08
		SAT 14-JUN-08
West Florida HS of Advanced Tech	222770	SAT 15-SEP-07
		SAT 27-OCT-07
		SAT 08-DEC-07
		SAT 09-FEB-08
		SAT 12-APR-08
		SAT 14-JUN-08

**SPECIAL NOTE: Non-Saturday testing is available only in remote areas or for students who cannot test on Saturday because of reli-gious convictions. If you try to stand by for a Sunday or Monday test center, you must bring a letter from your cleric or a notarized state-ment to verify that your religious beliefs prohibit Saturday testing. You will not be admitted without it.

Return to Requirements

Return to Top

If you’re a Football Prospect, You Want To Get Recruiting Calls in May.

Will you get a phone call from a college coach in May?

If you're a junior football player in high school, and the answer to that question turns out to be "no", then you just got a wake up call: Division I college football coaches probably don't know you exist. What you do in the next six months could determine whether or not you play college sports at the D1 level, or any level for that matter. Division I and II college football coaches are allowed to make one phone call to prospective athletes that they are seriously recruiting in the month of May. It gives coaches a chance to talk to the athlete in person, and begin laying the foundation for recruiting those athletes on a regular basis after July 1st prior to their senior year.

Any high school football player who is going to be a serious Division I scholarship candidate will probably be getting a call in May from a program that is seriously tracking them. There are exceptions to every rule, of course, but in general this month is a great barometer of the interest college coaches have in you as a high school football player. If you don’t get a call from a coach, that doesn't necessarily mean that all is lost and you won't play college sports. However, its should serve as an indicator of where things stand for you at this point in time, especially with Division I college football programs.

I bring this up as an important point because I have seen many talented, smart high school football players hang on to the dream of playing big-time Division I football all the way through their senior year. They do this despite the fact that they might have only received one or two letters from a high caliber program during their junior or senior year. Phone calls are what count in the coming months, senior football players. Phone calls, phone calls, phone calls!

Parents, you need to help your athlete look at the situation realistically as well. If your son isn’t getting a phone call from a college football coach this month, then he probably isn’t being seriously considered as a true prospect for that school. If you aren’t receiving attention from college coaches at this point, whether via letters or phone calls or e-mails, here are two key questions that I want to ask you:

Have you put your information out in front of college coaches?

You must make sure coaches are aware of who you are. You need to aggressively promote your talents to a variety of coaches at different schools at different levels and stop waiting for them to “discover” you at practice or at games.

If you have received letters from college coaches, have you replied to those letters and sent the requested information back to the college coach?

A coach is not going to seriously recruit you until he or she hears back from you. I have had many coaches tell me that they don't seriously recruit an athlete until they hear back from that athlete after sending them an initial letter or e-mail. Understand what I just said: If you don’t reply back to college coaches after they send you information, you won’t be recruited!

If you do receive a call in May, the good news is that you are probably near the top of that coach's list when it comes to prospects he or she is seriously considering. It's not a "guarantee" of a scholarship offer by any means, but it is a positive sign that coaches are taking notice of what you have to offer. Hopefully, more than one school is aware of your ability. If one school thinks this much of you, you should want as many other schools to track your progress as well and make an offer to you down the road.

Keep in mind that not getting a call in May is not the end of the world. Lots of athletes that don't get that early call in May end up playing in college, including Division I football. However, it could serve as a good gauge for where things are for you in the recruiting process right now. Do what you can to make sure you are getting exposed to college sports scholarship opportunities, and lots of them. To the degree that you can, try to take some control of your athletic future!

Return to Top

WHAT YOU MUST DO!

Marketing • Mail • Calls

THE MARKETING PLAN:

1. Put together your recruiting resume called a player profile.
   • Include name of school, city, state, Height, Weight, 40 time, GPA, Offers received. Schools you are interested in attending. Visits you have taken or plan to take. Any academic or sports honors you have received and statistics if applicable from last year.
2. Bring in blank VHS tapes and VHS mailers (padded envelopes), as soon as possible, you may be asked to submit more tapes in December.
3. Juniors and Seniors - Bring in copies of your player profile preferably printed in color but black & white is better than no profile.
4. We will prepare tapes and package them together - Players & Parents are responsible for postage.

If you want to play college football, but are probably going to be a non-scholarship player, apply to all schools you are interested in for admission and for financial aid. Apply AS EARLY AS POSSIBLE – no later than March of your senior year. You may wish to investigate walk-on options at scholarship schools so that you have the chance to compete for a scholarship while you play college football. In some cases, schools with scholarship programs can assist walk-ons with admission. In addition, non-scholarship programs are oftentimes more costly than scholarship programs.

Return to "What You Must Do"

Recruiting Mail

When/if you start to get mail from colleges, it usually comes from your coach’s recommendation, from calling the football office and sending them a recruiting resume, a recruiting service recommendation, and/or a spring visit. Every school that contacts you will ask you to complete a survey – COMPLETE IT AND RETURN IT PROMPTLY. It is important that you indicate that you are interested in their school. If they ask you to rate your interest, give them the highest possible rating. If they want you to rank the schools contacting you, list them first.

Return to "What You Must Do"

Telephone Calls

Hopefully, once we get into the season, you will start receiving phone calls from college coaches. The number of times they can contact you is limited by the NCAA. For most of the season, it is only one time per week. Remember that this process is not an exact science, show some personality when they call. Be interested in their program. Ask questions about them and their school. Some good questions to ask: What are their players doing now? What is the best part of their program? What are the academic programs their school offers? What are their prospects for next season? Always ask a follow up question when they answered the first. Show your personality. Be yourself. Relax and understand that they are calling because they are considering paying your way to college, be somebody with whom they want to spend five years.

Return to "What You Must Do"

NCAA, NAIA and Junior College Recruiting Information

Contact the sources below to obtain the most current up to- date information on recruiting at each level. Be as knowledgeable as you can about all rules and information from these organizations.

National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)
P.O. Box 6222
Indianapolis, IN 46206
800-638-3731
www.ncaa.org

Obtain a copy of the "The NCAA Guide for the College-Bound Student-Athlete". http://www.ncaa.org/library/general/cbsa/2006-07/2006-07_cbsa.pdf This NCAA booklet will provide the information on recruiting rules and college eligibility regulations.

NCAA Clearinghouse Information. Obtain NCAA Clearinghouse Information from the NCAA. www.ncaaclearinghouse.net

You MUST register. This step is very important.

Every high school student-athlete must register with the NCAA Eligibility Clearinghouse in order to compete in college athletics. The purpose of the NCAA clearinghouse is to approve eligibility for incoming college freshmen by examining the student-athlete's course content, and test scores. It is a must that every student-athlete registers with the Clearinghouse. To get the latest information, go to the NCAA web site at www.ncaa.org and/or write/call the NCAA Clearinghouse at:

2255 North Dubuque Road
P.O. Box 4044
Iowa City, Iowa 55243
Phone 319-337-1492

Also, it may be worthwhile to request information for college bound athletes from the following two college athletic organizations:

National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA)
23500 West 150th Street
Olathe, Kansas 66051
913-791-0044
www.naia.org

National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA)
P.O. Box 7305
Colorado Springs, Colorado 80933
719-590-9788
www.njcaa.org

Return to Top

The Rules

You are responsible for keeping up to date on NCAA, NAIA, and Junior College rules and changes. Order general academic brochures from all colleges to which you are mailing your profile.

There are very specific rules for the recruiting process dealing with phone calls by college coaches, official campus visits, coaches visiting you at certain times of the year, etc. You need to make sure you have the latest information on each one of these areas.

When visiting with representatives of colleges in person or on the phone, it is important to know whom you are visiting with, especially if you are being highly recruited. Some times boosters or alumni get involved in trying to help the high school student-athlete attend a certain college and may offer money or items that are illegal. Always know who the person is and what their position is in representing the college. Do not accept any type of financial cash offers or promises of financial payments or gifts from a person who states that they represent the school. This will jeopardize your college playing career and result in legal problems.

It is extremely important to be knowledgeable of all rules pertaining to the recruiting process.

Return to Top

WHAT ABOUT SUMMER CAMPS?

There are two basic types of summer sports camps. One type is the camp that emphasizes teaching techniques for either all positions or specific positions. These camps don't have any official affiliation with colleges. These camps may be held by current or former professional athletes. Often times, these camps are still worked or attended by college coaches and/or recruiters.

The second type of camps are very similar to the first, but is held on college campuses by the college coaching staff. More and more colleges are offering these types of summer camps now and using these camps as one of their primary methods of evaluating high school athletes for recruiting. When the high school athlete attends these college sports camps on a college campus, the college coaching staff has the ideal opportunity to evaluate the high school athlete's skills and potential, visit with the individual student, and then show the high school student their campus, and athletic facilities.

At these summer sports camps, the college coaching staff has a great opportunity to evaluate your skills and performance and determine if you are someone that they want in their college athletic program. This will greatly assist this college if they are interested in eventually offering you an athletic scholarship.

Attending these summer camps will allow you not only to improve your athletic skills and knowledge, but also allow you to visit the campus, meet and work with the coaching staff, specific position coaches, and assist you in determining if you would be interest in attending that college. If you already have a particular interest in a specific college, find out if this college is offering a summer camp.

Although these camps may cost anywhere from $50-$400 to attend, if may be well worth it to attend the camps, increase your skills and knowledge in your sport and gain exposure to college coaches and enable you to visit college campuses.

Return to Top

CAMPUS VISITS

Sample Questions

There are basically two types of campus visits that a prospect is allowed take. The first is the unofficial visit. Here a prospect is invited to attend a home athletic event at the college. The school will only supply the prospect with three complimentary admissions to the event. You can take as many unofficial visits as you like.

The second is the official visit. Here the prospect is invited to visit the college at the school’s expense. The school may pay for transportation to and from the college, room, meals and reasonable entertainment expenses, during the visit. Before you can be invited, you must supply the college with a copy of your high school transcripts, SAT, ACT, or PLAN score. You can only take 5 official visits and one per school.

Sample Questions to Ask During a Campus Visit

Questions for Coaches • Question for Players • Questions for Admin Office
Visit Evaluation

Some good questions to ask coaches.

• What is the in-season practice schedule like? How many hours per day, what times?
• What is the year round athletic schedule, in season daily schedules, off season workout schedule?
• What is Graduation rate of players?
• Is Academic help available, such as tutors for players, if needed?
• If receiving a scholarship, is the scholarship guaranteed for all 4 years? If not, what are the renewals based on and how many times have scholarships been pulled and under what circumstances?
• Is summer school covered by the scholarship?
• How many other players are planned to be brought in as freshmen at my position?
• Can I play a second sport (if you are interested)?
• What are the weight-room facilities like?
• What are the practice facilities like?
• What are the game facilities like?
• What is the average attendance?
• What position does the coach see you playing at their college?
• What type of offense and defense will this college playing next year? Has this changed from what types you have played in the past?
• Who will your position coach be?
• Can I meet and visit with my position coach before I make my final college decision(always ask).
• What percentage of the players on the team receives scholarships?
• What are your chances of being offered an athletic scholarship at this college?
• Is there is a possibility of receiving a scholarship(always ask).
• How many "walk-ons" (players on the roster who are not receiving an athletic scholarship) do you have on your roster?

Return to Sample Questions

Questions to ask other college players when visiting the campus.

• What do you think about the coaches and practices?
• How is team morale?
• If you could make your choice over again, would you choose this college?
• What is the head coach and assistant coaches' coaching style
• (Repeat some of the questions from the "Ask Coaches List")

Return to Sample Questions

Questions for School Admissions Office

• Admissions
  What are the requirements for admissions to your college?
• Test Scores?
• Grades?
• GPA?
• Class Rank?
• Other Academic Information
• What Process is Used for Admissions
• Academics
• Does this school offer your intended major?
• Can you see the building(s) where these classes will be held?
• Can you visit with a professor from this department?
• Can you visit a classroom?
• Can you visit a class in session?
• What areas of study is this college known for?
• What well known people have attended this college?
• Faculty
• Who teaches the undergraduate classes, - professors, and graduate assistants?
• What will the average class size be?
• How large are the classes in your intended major?
• Ask questions about your major (if you know what you want to major in, or ask about several possible majors)
• Living Arrangements
• Are there specific rules regarding living arrangements for freshmen students?
• Do these rules change as a student advances to the next year in college?
• Can a student live off campus?
• What are the dorms like? Size, bathrooms, how old etc…
• Can you visit a dorm?
• What is the campus cafeteria like? Do football players have their own training table?
• Campus Activities
• What campus activities are popular for students?
• What activities and events are available in this community/town/city?
• What do most students at this college do on the weekends?
• Financial Aid
  Unless you are absolutely positive that you will be offered an athletic scholarship, ask about financial aid.
• What financial aid is available?
• What is the application process for financial aid?
• What are the deadlines to submit applications?
• What special academic scholarships are available (if you qualify)?
• Ask about loans, grants, and work study programs.

Return to Sample Questions

Evaluate Each Visit!!

Take notes on each visit. If you don't want to take notes throughout the day as you visit with college personnel, at least take notes at the end of each day. These notes will be important as you compare each campus visit. You may think that you can remember everything that you learned and observed from each campus but after you visit many campuses it will be hard to remember important details about each one without getting confused.

If you don't take notes you may have problems remembering certain things about each college visit when comparing the campus visits or your thoughts may be confused as to what things you saw at each college.

After returning home from your college visits, make sure you write the college personnel that you spoke with and thank them for their time, the information that they provided to you, and let them know again of your interest in their college.

After returning home from your college visits, make sure you write the college personnel that you spoke with and thank them for their time, the information that they provided to you, and let them know again of your interest in their college.

Things to consider when evaluating colleges after your campus visit:

• What was your overall feeling of the school?
• Would you consider attending that college if you weren't going to participate in any sports?
• What were the living arrangements like?
• Will participating on the athletic team at this college give you the opportunity to meet your college athletic goals?

If you are not going to be offered an athletic scholarship, your options are:

Check your college search and notes that you have taken of colleges to see if there are other colleges that may be interested in offering you an athletic scholarship.

This is why it is so very important to have an open mind as you start your college search process and why it is important to contact many, many colleges. Then if some of the colleges that you may have had the most interest in, don't offer you an athletic scholarship you may have many others to choose from.

You do not want to wait until the "National Letter of Intent" signing day and then the two colleges that you were hoping to receive scholarship offers from, don't offer scholarships. If this happens you would be without ANY possible offers.

Spend considerable time doing ALL the steps listed previously and contact MANY colleges on EACH level. Allow yourself MANY options to choose from. Let MANY colleges know about you! Don't get to the day of the signing date with no offers and then try to scramble to find ANY college to take an interest in you in just a few short days. IT WON’T HAPPEN.

IF THINGS DON’T WORK OUT:

Consider "Walking On". If you really want to play at a Division I college and were not offered a scholarship, you can consider being a "Walk-On". A "walk-on" is a member of the team but does not have an athletic scholarship. Some college coaches may communicate that opportunity to the high school athletes when they visit with them. The college coach may be very interested in a high school athlete but just cannot offer an athletic scholarship at that time. When an individual participates as a walk-on, they may still have the opportunity to receive an athletic scholarship the next year.

Consider going to a college at a lower division level, such as D-III. Once again your ultimate goal in your college selection process if to choose the "right" college for "you". The "right" college for you may be a smaller college. There are only a relative few high school student-athletes that will be fortunate enough to be offered a full ride athletic scholarship to a college. This doesn't mean that the student-athlete can't participate in college athletics. You can still participate and have an excellent college athletic experience. It just means that the student-athlete and parents must be knowledgeable about other financial aid packages and other options that are available.

Return to Sample Questions

Return to Top

FINANCIAL AID

You will need to explore options on how to finance your college education if you were not offered an athletic scholarship. Learn as much as you can about YOUR Financial Aid options. Every family's financial situation is different; therefore every individual's financial aid package will be different.

It is extremely important to research and find out what financial aid is available and then make sure that Financial Aid is applied for by the required deadlines. Make sure you research all possible scholarship opportunities. Besides academic type scholarships, there are some very unique scholarship opportunities that apply to only certain individuals. Research this opportunity to find out which ones you can apply for.

The financial aid options include scholarship possibilities besides athletic and academic scholarships. Other possibilities are grants (Pell Grants and SEOG Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants), low interest student loans, and work study programs.

Make sure you check with your high school counselor to receive information on financial aid programs and then when contacting each individual college request information about financial aid.

Sometimes, private colleges although appearing to be initially far more expensive than state colleges, can actually provide more financial aid than state public colleges. Make sure you explore the options available for each college as you near narrowing your list of colleges and making your final choice.

The area of financial aid is a very important area that needs to be researched. Every student-athletes situation will be different. Don't neglect obtaining additional information in this area.

Visit with your high school counselor, visit your local bookstores, and search the internet for additional information on all the financial aid options.

You need to search each one of these sites to learn all that you can about your financial options. Conducting this research can save you thousands and thousands on your college tuition!

www.finaid.com
www.gocollege.com
www.ed.gov/prog_info/SFA/StudentGuide/
www.collegeboard.com
www.college-scholarships.com/
www.collegenet.com
www.finaid.org
www.petersons.com
www.aessuccess.org/Find_Money_Higher_Education/Glossary.shtml
http://www.fastweb.com
www.collegeboard.com
www.srnexpress.com/index.cfm
www.ed.gov/prog_info/SFA/StudentGuide/
www.ed.gov/topics/topics/topics.jsp?&top=Financial+Aid
www.nflhs.com/academics/FinancialAid

Return to Top

IMPORTANT NOTES TO REMEMBER:

• Create your profile on nice paper.
• Email the file to Coach.
• Keep track of the letters received from the colleges and fill out and return all questionnaires.
• Keep track of the colleges that you haven't heard back from. If these college coaches are in the middle of their season their response back to you may be a little later. If you do not hear back from colleges within 30-45 days, tell Coach and we’ll make sure we’ve called them.
• Keep file folders from each college that you are interested in and file responses that you have received in these folders. This will also allow you to see what colleges haven't responded back. You can re-contact those schools.
• Be knowledgeable that college coaches have limitations as to when they can start calling prospects. Keep in contact with the schools athletic department. You can call the coach or the specific athletic department if you wish to follow up on your letters. This may be an intimidating step, but it will set you apart from all other high school athletes. Phone calls should be made by the student-athlete and not the parents.
• Keep your Player Profile updated. You don't have to update it every few weeks, but keep it current. Don't use the same Player Profile that you wrote a year ago. If you receive new athletic honors or new SAT or ACT scores include these items on your new Player Profile.

Return to Top

Estimated Probability of Competing in Athletics Beyond the High School Interscholastic Level

Student-Athletes	Football
High School Student-Athletes	1,071,775
High School Senior Student-Athletes	306,221
NCAA Student-Athletes	61,252
NCAA Freshman Roster Positions	17,501
NCAA Senior Student-Athletes	13,612
NCAA Student-Athletes Drafted	250
Percent High School to NCAA	5.7%
Percent NCAA to Professional	1.8%
Percent High School to Professional	0.08%

Note: These percentages are based on estimated data and should be considered approximations of the actual percent-ages.

Return to Top